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Rita Colwell

Distinguished University Professor
3103 Biomolecular Sciences Building
(301) 405-9550
Academic Web Page
Education: 
Ph.D., University of Washington (Oceanography)
Special Awards/Honors: 
2006 National Medal of Science (given by President George W. Bush), 2010 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate, AAAS, President, American Society for Microbiology (ASM), President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Maryland’s Top 100 Women, Maryland’s Top 100 Women Hall of Fame, Elected Member National Academy of Sciences, Foreign Fellow of The Royal Society of Canada, Fellow AAAS, AIBS Outstanding Service Award, Central Intelligence Agency Civilian Recognition Award, National Women’s Hall of Fame, “The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star,” Japan Society for Promotion of Science , President-Elect, American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), President, American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), AAUW Award (American Association of University Women), and several others.

Publications

2006


Belkin S, Colwell RR.  2006.  Oceans And Health: Pathogens In The Marine Environment.

Alam M, Hasan NA, Sadique A, Bhuiyan N.A, Ahmed KU, Nusrin S, G. Nair B, Siddique A.K, R. Sack B, Sack DA et al..  2006.  Seasonal Cholera Caused by Vibrio Cholerae Serogroups O1 and O139 in the Coastal Aquatic Environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 72

Huq A, Grim C, Colwell RR, G. Nair B.  2006.  Detection, Isolation, and Identification of Vibrio cholerae from the Environment. Current Protocols in MicrobiologyCurrent Protocols in Microbiology.

Mantri CK, Mohapatra SS, Ramamurthy T, Ghosh R, Colwell RR, Singh DV.  2006.  Septaplex PCR assay for rapid identification of Vibrio cholerae including detection of virulence and int SXT genes. FEMS Microbiology LettersFEMS Microbiology Letters. 265

Colwell RR.  2006.  Microbial diversity in the era of genomics. SYMPOSIA-SOCIETY FOR GENERAL MICROBIOLOGY. 66

Alam M., Sadique A., Bhuiyan N.A, Nair G.B, Siddique A.K, Sack D.A, Ahsan S., Huq A., Sack R.B, Colwell RR et al..  2006.  Effect of transport at ambient temperature on detection and isolation of Vibrio cholerae from environmental samples. Applied and environmental microbiologyApplied and environmental microbiology. 72

Alam M, Sultana M, G. Nair B, R. Sack B, Sack DA, Siddique A.K, Ali A, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2006.  Toxigenic Vibrio Cholerae in the Aquatic Environment of Mathbaria, Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 72

2005


Pruzzo C., Huq A., Colwell RR, Donelli G..  2005.  Pathogenic Vibrio species in the marine and estuarine environment. Oceans and health: pathogens in the marine environmentOceans and health: pathogens in the marine environment.

Colwell RR.  2005.  Cholera: the killer from the deep. The BiochemistThe Biochemist.

Colwell RR.  2005.  Global microbial ecology of Vibrio cholerae. Oceans and health: pathogens in the marine environmentOceans and health: pathogens in the marine environment.

Louis VR, Gillespie IA, O'Brien SJ, Russek-Cohen E, Pearson AD, Colwell RR.  2005.  Temperature-Driven Campylobacter Seasonality in England and Wales. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 71

Huq A, R. Sack B, Nizam A, Longini IM, G. Nair B, Ali A, J. Morris G, Khan M.NHuda, A. Siddique K, Yunus M et al..  2005.  Critical Factors Influencing the Occurrence of Vibrio Cholerae in the Environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 71

2004


Colwell RR, Faruque S.M, Nair G.B.  2004.  Free-Living to Freewheeling: The Evolution of Vibrio cholerae from Innocence to Infamy. Infectious Disease and Host-Pathogen EvolutionInfectious Disease and Host-Pathogen Evolution.

Islam M.S, Talukder K.A, Khan N.H, Mahmud Z.H, Rahman M.Z, Nair G.B, Siddique A.KM, Yunus M., Sack D.A, Sack R.B et al..  2004.  Variation of toxigenic Vibrio cholerae O1 in the aquatic environment of Bangladesh and its correlation with the clinical strains. Microbiology and immunologyMicrobiology and Immunology. 48

Islam M.S, Tasmin R, Khan SI s l a m, Bakht HBM, Mahmood ZH a y a t, Rahman M.Z i a u r, Bhuiyan NA m i n, Nishibuchi M, Nair G.B a l a k, e y Sack R.B r a d l et al..  2004.  Pandemic strains of O3:K6 Vibrio parahaemolyticus in the aquatic environment of Bangladesh. Canadian Journal of MicrobiologyCanadian Journal of Microbiology. 50

Espeland EM, Lipp EK, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2004.  Polylysogeny and prophage induction by secondary infection in Vibrio cholerae. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 6

Binsztein N, Costagliola MC, Pichel M, Jurquiza V, Ramírez FC, Akselman R, Vacchino M, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2004.  Viable but Nonculturable Vibrio Cholerae O1 in the Aquatic Environment of Argentina. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 70

Colwell RR.  2004.  A Tangled Bank: Reflections on the Tree of Life and Human Health. Assembling the Tree of LifeAssembling the Tree of Life.

Snellman E.A, Colwell RR.  2004.  Acinetobacter lipases: molecular biology, biochemical properties and biotechnological potential. Journal of industrial microbiology & biotechnologyJournal of industrial microbiology & biotechnology. 31

Gil AI, Louis VR, Rivera ING, Lipp E, Huq A, Lanata CF, Taylor DN, Russek‐Cohen E, Choopun N, R. Sack B et al..  2004.  Occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in the coastal environment of Peru. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 6

Colwell RR.  2004.  Infectious disease and environment: cholera as a paradigm for waterborne disease. International MicrobiologyInternational Microbiology. 7

2003


Colwell RR.  2003.  From terabytes to insights. Communications of the ACMCommunications of the ACM. 46

Rivera ING, Lipp EK, Gil A, Choopun N, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Method of DNA extraction and application of multiplex polymerase chain reaction to detect toxigenic Vibrio cholerae O1 and O139 from aquatic ecosystems. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 5

Faruque SM, Kamruzzaman M., Meraj IM, Chowdhury N, G. Nair B, R. Sack B, Colwell RR, Sack DA.  2003.  Pathogenic Potential of Environmental Vibrio Cholerae Strains Carrying Genetic Variants of the Toxin-Coregulated Pilus Pathogenicity Island. Infection and ImmunityInfect. Immun.Infection and ImmunityInfect. Immun.. 71

Talledo M, Rivera ING, Lipp EK, Neale A, Karaolis D, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Characterization of a Vibrio cholerae phage isolated from the coastal water of Peru. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 5

Lipp EK, Rivera ING, Gil AI, Espeland EM, Choopun N, Louis VR, Russek-Cohen E, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Direct Detection of Vibrio Cholerae and ctxA in Peruvian Coastal Water and Plankton by PCR. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 69

Pruzzo C, Tarsi R, Lleò MDel Mar, Signoretto C, Zampini M, Pane L, Colwell RR, Canepari P.  2003.  Persistence of adhesive properties in Vibrio cholerae after long‐term exposure to sea water. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 5

Louis VR, Russek-Cohen E, Choopun N, Rivera ING, Gangle B, Jiang SC, Rubin A, Patz JA, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Predictability of Vibrio Cholerae in Chesapeake Bay. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 69

R. Sack B, A. Siddique K, Longini IM, Nizam A, Yunus M, M. Islam S, Morris, Ali A, Huq A, G. Nair B et al..  2003.  A 4-Year Study of the Epidemiology of Vibrio Cholerae in Four Rural Areas of Bangladesh. Journal of Infectious DiseasesJ Infect Dis.Journal of Infectious DiseasesJ Infect Dis.. 187

Faruque SM, Sack DA, R. Sack B, Colwell RR, Takeda Y, G. Nair B.  2003.  Emergence and Evolution of Vibrio Cholerae O139. Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNASProceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNAS. 100

Colwell RR, Huq A, M. Islam S, Aziz K.MA, Yunus M., N. Khan H, Mahmud A., R. Sack B, Nair G.B, Chakraborty J. et al..  2003.  Reduction of Cholera in Bangladeshi Villages by Simple Filtration. Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNASProceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNAS. 100

Colwell RR.  2003.  ANNUAL REVIEW & FORECAST REPORTS-THE OCEANS: TO PROTECT AND TO PLOW. Sea TechnologySea Technology. 44

2002


Le Saux MFischer-, Hervio-Heath D, Loaec S, Colwell RR, Pommepuy M.  2002.  Detection of Cytotoxin-Hemolysin mRNA in Nonculturable Populations of Environmental and Clinical Vibrio Vulnificus Strains in Artificial Seawater. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 68

Colwell RR.  2002.  Fulfilling the promise of marine biotechnology. Marine biotechnology in the twenty-first century: problems, promise, and productsMarine biotechnology in the twenty-first century: problems, promise, and products.

Ivanova EP, Matte GR, Matte MH, Coenye T, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Characterization of Pseudoalteromonas citrea and P. nigrifaciens Isolated from Different Ecological Habitats Based on REP-PCR Genomic Fingerprints. Systematic and Applied MicrobiologySystematic and Applied Microbiology. 25

Zo Y.G, Rivera I.NG, Russek-Cohen E., Islam M.S, Siddique A.K, Yunus M., Sack R.B, Huq A., Colwell RR.  2002.  Genomic profiles of clinical and environmental isolates of Vibrio cholerae O1 in cholera-endemic areas of Bangladesh. Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 99

Colwell RR.  2002.  A voyage of discovery: cholera, climate and complexity. Environmental MicrobiologyEnvironmental Microbiology. 4

Choopun N, Louis V, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Simple Procedure for Rapid Identification of Vibrio Cholerae from the Aquatic Environment. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 68

Snellman EA, Sullivan ER, Colwell RR.  2002.  Purification and properties of the extracellular lipase, LipA, of Acinetobacter sp. RAG‐1. European Journal of BiochemistryEuropean Journal of Biochemistry. 269

Chun J., Rivera I.NG, Colwell RR.  2002.  Analysis of 16S-23S rRNA intergenic spacer of Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio mimicus for detection of these species. METHODS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGYMETHODS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY. 179

Lipp EK, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Effects of Global Climate on Infectious Disease: The Cholera Model. Clinical Microbiology ReviewsClin. Microbiol. Rev.Clinical Microbiology ReviewsClin. Microbiol. Rev.. 15

Pruzzo C., Tarsi R., Lleò M.M, Signoretto C., Zampini M., Colwell RR, Canepari P..  2002.  In vitro adhesion to human cells by viable but nonculturable Enterococcus faecalis. Current microbiologyCurrent microbiology. 45

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